Regulations for Assisted Living Homes

Although regulations for assisted living homes are set by individual states, there are some general areas all states regulate. These areas include licensing, levels of care and services offered, staffing, financial policies, and medical components such as medication distribution. In addition, assisted living homes must participate in monitoring and on-site inspection.

Licenses

• Individual states set up regulations governing what guidelines must be met in order to obtain a license to operate an assisted living facility.

Services Offered

• Each assisted living site must specify what level of care it offers for residents, as well as what qualifies the site to offer specific levels of care. In addition, the specific services offered must be made clear.

Staffing

• Each state sets the minimum requirements for direct care staff as well as administration for an assisted living site; some states may also specify the minimum ratio of staff to resident care.

Medical Components

• Regulations are set by some states for what type of medical care needs to be offered by an assistant living facility, including such areas as training of those assigned to assist patients with medication needs.

Financial Regulations

• States may require that residents be clearly informed of all costs associated with residency at an assisted living facility, as well as policies regarding the facility's Medicaid policy.